


Remedy

by hibiren



Series: Jay's Gladnis Collection [18]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Aphrodisiacs, Comfort, Consensual Sex, Fantasy, Feels, Forehead Touching, Foreplay, Gentle Sex, Grinding, Healing, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Injury Recovery, Kissing, Love, Love Bites, M/M, Magic, Mer-Gladio, Mer-Ignis, MerMay, Mild Blood, NSFW, Potions, Romance, Scars, Sex, Sleeping Together, Slow Romance, Sweet, Touching, True Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-18
Updated: 2019-06-18
Packaged: 2020-05-14 00:49:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,135
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19262614
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hibiren/pseuds/hibiren
Summary: [gladnis merfolk AU] Ignis wants to help ease Gladio's pain from the years of scars he's suffered for his king, but his remedy has unintentional side effects...





	Remedy

**Author's Note:**

> I definitely got carried away dreaming of my gladnis thoughts while writing Saltwater Sweetness (especially after that passage from the third chapter!) so here's a bit of feelsy sexiness I wrote because I felt like they deserved a bit of happiness!

“You worry too much, love,” Ignis hummed, slipping the woven partition to his chambers over the entryway. Gladio grumbled in response, a noise muted by the water between them.

Slipping close, Ignis touched his forehead to his soldier’s and smiled, offering the weary Gladio a place to rest on a nearby hollowed-rock, its mossy covering allowing much more comfort than the standard anemone or sandbed. Gladio rubbed his hands against his eyes, flat-palmed and pressing the heels against his eyelids, visibly stressed.

“How can I not be worried? Aren’t you? You don’t know what that human is capable of, and neither do I…” Uncertainty tainted his voice, but he knew to keep his volume low.

Ignis floated over to his side after picking up a few things he kept hidden behind a small carved enclosure - a glass bottle filled with a glistening milky-pink liquid, and a feathered driftwood twig with thin patches of moss at its tip. Ignis swirled the bottle and sent the contents into a vortexing spiral, pleasantly circling slowly within the confines of the glass.

“That isn’t going to help them go away, you know,” Gladio muttered, glancing at the bottle and lowering his now-crossed arms to his chest. “You got lucky with my fins. The rest of them… ”

“Hush, love, please. I promise this one will at least help with the pain.” Ignis frowned, lips tight together as he uncapped the bottle. He stuck the moss-end of the driftwood brush inside and concentrated heavily as he lowered the brush with the thick, condensed salve onto Gladiolus’ scarred chest after gently nudging the soldier’s broad arms aside. “I made sure to alter the formula properly this time.”

Gladio winced as Ignis delicately spread the salve across a particularly large scar. The story behind it; Ignis remembered when Gladio defended their cave from an attack by a panicked and frenzied shark. Naturally it hadn’t gone down without a fight, leaving Gladio breathless and bleeding heavily from a deep bite to the chest, but alive. The tooth that had embedded itself just below his ribcage now hung on a thick string somewhere in the barren, sparsely-decorated caveroom that Gladio slept in. Ignis remembered the soldier saying something about it being “too valuable to let go to waste” and turned it into a trophy of his victory.

“Why are you so concerned about this? You’ve got a lot more to worry about than me. I can handle my pain,” hissed Gladio past a pained inhale when the salve started working into his skin, a pale glow rising as the magic took effect. Ignis worked as quickly but diligently as he could, spreading the remedy across the worst of his healed-over wounds. The soldier kept his fists clenched until they shook, doing his best to bite back any sounds of hurt.

“It’s alright, love,” Ignis whispered, placing the brush and bottle aside to smooth the remaining patches of salve over his soldier’s skin. “Please, you don’t need to hold anything from me. You know you’re more to me than just a soldier, you carry my life with you. Even though we are not mated, we share in spirit.”

Gladio chuckled, the tip of his fins twitching in amusement even though he winced nonetheless. “You never did explain to me why we couldn’t.”

“I… worry it would put you in danger,” Ignis frowned, his circlet gleaming against the glowrocks as if in agreement. “The crown is too precious to risk knowing that someone could hold you captive against my orders and bind my hands by that if we were officially mated. One life… is it worth that of my entire kingdom? I ask myself that each night.”

Gladio went silent, eventually nodding and mumbling, “I understand, my king.”

“I don’t think you do, Gladiolus.” Ignis’ hands continued working against Gladio’s muscular chest, massaging gentle circles into the tense skin. He smiled, just a hint, as his soldier let out a muted groan. He leaned in close so that he could touch his circlet-clad forehead against Gladio’s own scarred one and let out a peaceful sigh. “You see, I love you very much. More than a king should owe his soldier. And I don’t know what to do. My callings are tearing me in so many different directions, and yet I’m only capable of traveling in one.”

Eyes closed, Gladio reached out for his king’s hand and it was offered without complaint. “You really think I’d let myself get kidnapped or held for ransom? I’m your soldier for a reason. No one is going to hurt you as long as I’m here to keep you safe.”

“Of course.”

The glow from the salve began to fade, and only then did Gladio finally look like he was relaxing, his jaw unclenching and his other hand uncurling to reveal small nail-marks indented in his palm, but he seemed to feel better nonetheless. Ignis slipped down beside him in the hollow and rested his head on his soldier’s shoulder, his slim tail curling easily against Gladio’s and offering what additional comforts he could. He hummed and ran his fingers through his love’s lightly drifting hair, willing himself to do just that and not much more, lest he get carried away.

It was so, so difficult, knowing that the one he loved, his anxiety forbade him from going outside of his own comfort zone even though his soul ached for closure. For comfort. So much responsibility at his shoulders, but he was still young - it wasn’t like he exactly had a choice in the matter when the circlet was placed on his head. He and Gladiolus could no longer continue their flirtings as they had, keeping what little time they could share in private to a minimum since more eyes were on them than before. It hurt Ignis quite a bit although he hoped Gladio never took notice.

Gladio let out a content but tired grunt and slowly raised his arms to hold Ignis close against his faintly-glowing chest. He seemed oblivious to the turbulence within Ignis’ mind, light bliss on his face as if his pain really had subsided for just a while. “Thank you, my king.”

“I’ll do everything I can to ease your pain, my love. This is one battle I won’t let you fight alone.”

He should have stopped himself, but something strange was beginning to happen. Something wasn’t quite right. A telltale, tingling shiver carried through his body and again he hoped that Gladio was too lost in his own relief to take note. Confused and panic blooming, Ignis ran through a list of things in his mind that could possibly explain his sudden… warmth.

_Crushed anemone, a half-pearl, a handful of urchin spines, petals from the garden of blooming red seaflowers… and starfish._

Ignis recalled his notes, but frowned as he turned over everything he’d memorized. In his rush of discovering that the addition of starfish to his remedy would best alleviate Gladio’s pain, he forgot to note until just now that yes, when added whole, it was in fact a notable aphrodisiac. When added in pieces, it left the body simply feeling light and pleasant.

Uncomfortably, Ignis cleared his throat and tried to ignore the rising heat that trickled through every vein. Curse that sizeable starfish, but he could certainly vouch for its potency.

“I should let you rest,” he managed after a moment, but Gladio’s grip around him only tightened. The resulting shift as Ignis tried to free himself only sent several consecutive and increasingly arousing jolts through him, sending little shocks through the water as well as his tail which twitched and shuddered against his will.

“Stay… please?” Gladio asked, voice barely above a plea. It made Ignis want to melt into his love’s touch but the fragments of his better judgment still attempted to fight off the starfish’s wrath. It seemed impossible, given that they were quite entangled, Ignis pressed to Gladio’s side. Not for much longer; a moment passed and the soldier turned, bringing their hips together in an intoxicatingly delicious friction. Breath heavy with need, he whispered, “Please, my king, don’t leave me. Stay…”

“I don’t want you to suffer any longer because of me,” Ignis struggled, his hands and body moving as if on their own, touches gentle and careful over time leading to something more passionate despite his internal fears, the pounding of his heart against his chest. “I want to be with you, but I’m frightened.”

“What do you have to be scared of?” Gladio hummed, a satisfied sigh echoing softly through the room when their hips met again in a slow grind, his broad hands at the join between scales and skin aiding in the friction. “I swore you my life. My body. My soul. I’m not letting anyone take you away from me, mateship included.”

“You don’t think I’m being selfish at all, or reckless, or risking my kingdom?” Ignis asked, gently nipping his way up Gladio’s jawline to his ear, savoring each shudder in response as his teeth left alarmingly pink marks along the flesh. _To be dealt with later,_ Ignis cursed, far too lost in his own bodily pleasure to think of much else other than release.

“No, I don’t. You’ve done so much for us, it’s time to do something for yourself. I think the others will understand. If they don’t, they don’t deserve to stay here.”

In a way, Ignis could tell that it wasn’t purely just the aphrodisiac allowing Gladio to speak so freely of his own opinion. It must have been something he was holding in for a very long time.

“I love you, my king,” Gladio whispered, faint moans at the tail of his declaration.

“And I you, Gladiolus,” replied Ignis as he brought their hips together again with renewed passion. In admittance, this was the first time he’d ever really let himself go, willingly. There were fleeting times in the past, but they seemed like distant memories since he’d become king.

He clung to his soldier as they moved, tails entangled and arms wrapped tight together as if they could coil into each other and disappear if they wished. The rocks overhead only cast a faint greenish glow, as if setting ambience for their lust. All else washed from Ignis’ mind as time passed, frenzied pace increasing - only the two of them mattered, nothing else. And in that moment he found strength he’d never realized. Holding back his love for Gladio was only hindering him, not helping him as he hoped. He thought putting his love aside would help him rule with a clear head, but in fact, it had the opposite effect.

He loved Gladiolus more than he loved his crown. Only now was he ready to admit such a near-treasonous statement. Those who came before him would understand. He was young. The only successor of the crown. He never had a chance to mate; his only companion being his sworn guard and friend, Gladiolus. His life was upended before he had the chance to fully explore himself.

The two writhed in time with each other, a perfect pair, panting and only pausing for breath to say the other’s name, or offer excited nips at the other’s mouth. A transactional kiss was one thing, but there were times merfolk allowed themselves a bit of stolen human intimacy. Tongues entwining at last, they rocked slowly against the hollow until Ignis let out a frantic cry, blindsided by the intensity of an unexpected orgasm. Gladio steadily worked him through it, never relenting until Ignis finally began to come down from his high. Gladio convulsed lightly against his king’s touch as he slowed pace, as if waiting in turn. Ignis kissed him deeply, hands fighting for a hold on his soldier’s long, tangled hair, clinging with every last bit of energy he had until Gladio laid beside him, panting and spent.

They laid together, still entangled in the aftermath, but each found themselves bearing a tired, content smile.

“Thank you,” Ignis breathed, no longer able to keep his heavy eyelids open. He rested his head against Gladio’s chest and Gladio inched him closer, trembling arms barely allowing.

“No, thank _you,_ beautiful,” whispered Gladio, happily nuzzling against the top of Ignis’ head. “You helped me… a lot more than you think. I think this might’ve been the remedy I needed all along.”

“Oh, really? Perhaps… I could schedule a few more healing sessions for you soon?”

“I’d like that… a lot.”

With a weary chuckle, Gladio’s labored panting eventually evened off into slow, calm breaths. He sounded like he was sleeping, and Ignis knew that they wouldn’t be disturbed for another long few hours, so he made the choice to savor the moment, praying that he could remember it forever.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! I felt like this fic was better as its own listing rather than a chapter insert, because I love these two a lot and I want them to be happy! If you want the rest of my merstory, it's promptis with notes of gladnis intertwined; it's called "Saltwater Sweetness" and I have a few more gladnis ideas interspersed if I can fit them!


End file.
